Photo credit Sam Costello

If you’re like me, and live in Southwest New Mexico, you’ve been happily humming at least a little of “I’ve Seen Fire and I’ve Seen RAIN” … with apologies to James Taylor. Our monsoon season seems to have come early to help mitigate the Trout Fire in the Gila National Forest that has burned over 47,000 acres and involved over 1400 fire fighters. Hundreds were evacuated in our community and many, many others on ready status. Amazingly, almost no homes were consumed, and the crews have done extra work to help prevent the disastrous flooding and erosion that can follow in burn areas. All of this is to say that we are so fortunate to live in a protected community that has resources to save our lives, our families and our homes. What if that weren’t the case? What if we lived somewhere where suddenly we had to “evacuate/flee” for our lives, probably never to return? That, of course, is what the Border Update is all about.

I know it’s been a while since you’ve heard from me but this time, I’m not just writing about the horrendous things happening all over our country, but of news much closer to home. First of all, thank you to everyone who contributed last month to our Border Justice Project at Give Grandly, the local non-profit fundraiser event. We raised over $5000 and have been using the money to support Indivisible activities and other local border work.  We are staying true to our objective to fund NM and Palomas work. BUT PLEASE DO NOT LEAVE ANY PHYSICAL DONATIONS AT THE UU FELLOWSHIP BUILDING.  WE ARE NOT ACTIVELY COLLECTING AT THIS TIME.

HUMANIZE, DON’T MILITARIZE OUR BORDER

Join us for a peaceful rally to support a just & humane solution.

Saturday, July 12 at 9 AM Santa Teresa, NM

Silver City Indivisible is sponsoring a rally on the border on July 12th . It will be in Santa Teresa NM, south of Las Cruces. I know that’s a ways from Silver City, but close to many of you in Las Cruces and other points south. You will not be in the militarized zone. PLEASE SPREAD THE WORD! And bring signs supporting immigrant families. See www.fivermccoy.org for maps & details.

Still with me? Some of you may remember Pedro, a father from Guatemala who fell from the wall (as many did) near Deming in January 2021. He broke both his ankles, and without any medical treatment from Border Patrol he was expelled into Palomas. At one point he was interviewed by Univision (American Spanish language TV). He had left Guatemala because he was being victimized by the cartel and threatened with death, but still needed to provide for his family of four children.

To the right of Pedro is Sandra Magallanes who many, many of you have met. She got her legal US citizenship in June 2021 but still continued to aid migrants and was the coordinator of the migrant shelter we maintained in Palomas MX for several years. Sandra never forgot Pedro and helped him through his legal entry into the US, as he received medical care and later moved to Florida to work in construction, even in great pain, in order to send money back home.

Last month, Pedro was picked up by ICE in Florida and deported back to Guatemala. He now lives with his wife and 4 kids in a rented two room home. With the money he earned in Florida he does own land and wants to build his own house. Sandra is trying to raise money to help him do so.  ANY MONEY WE RECEIVE NOW UNTIL THE END OF JULY WILL GO TO THIS FUND. This is a special request on behalf of Sandra.

And lastly, a small group of us recently met with Leonardo Castaneda who is with the Office of New Americans, a Division of the NM Department of Workforce Solutions. Ostensibly it was about a family in Silver City facing housing instability connected to their immigration status.  Leo describes his office as the intersection of immigration and labor. But it includes so much more! Education, health, food and housing among others.  So if anyone in your New Mexico community is looking for help, feels threatened, or needs resources, please reach out to Leo at Leonardo.Castaneda@dws.nm.us  or (505) 627-6428

If you have made, or continue to make financial contributions to our Border Justice Project, we will maintain and disburse those funds to serve the same populations we originally committed to in Deming and Palomas, and more recently at other points in southern NM. I will continue writing emails as we know more.

You may go to Border Justice Donation, or you can mail checks made out to UUFSC (Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Silver City) with ‘Border’ in the memo line to UUFSC, PO Box 4034, Silver City, NM 88062.

Thank you for being a part of the resistance and the change we need to sustain our community and ourselves ~Barbara